Bygone Afterlife
by Kat Loussier
Summary: When you forget someone dear, you lose a piece of your heart. But when you forget a precious time in your life, you lose part of your being. HIATUS.
1. Chapter 1: The New Girls

**A/N:** Yeah, this is my sixth fanfic, or seventh. I know I shouldn't have started a new one, what with all the others I still have to finish, and rewrite… but inspiration struck, and I couldn't help myself… I know I'm evil.

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**Chapter 1: The New Girls

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**

Chihiro, barely looked up from her desk. The teacher was saying something about some new exchange students, but Chihiro was tuning her out and looking at the landscape outside.

Of course the teacher noticed this and snapped, "Chihiro, thank you for volunteering to take our new students on a tour of the school!" (A/N: I don't know whether they do this in Japan, but they've done it at every school of mine, I'm almost always picked…)

Chihiro grumbled her acceptance as three girls around her own age entered the room.

"Now," Miss Fuyushima spoke. "This is Teran," she gestured to the girl with amazing red hair that fell in perfect layers to her shoulders, "Dia," she pointed to the girl with snapped brown eyes that were hidden behind some very stylish, modern glasses, "And Yuki," the final girl had long black hair that fell to midback.

Chihiro recongnized her cue, and stood up to join them muttering, "My name's Chihiro, I'll be escorting you around the school."

Once they left the room Teran spoke up, "Chihiro-san, I know you know our names, but I would like to introduce myself properly, I'm Teran Ashikawa."

Dia then added, "Dia Ashikawa, I'm Teran's older sister. And this is Yuki Shiratobi (A/N: I think that's Sasuke from Samurai Deeper Kyo's last name… OH WELL!)."

Yuki said nothing and only inclined her head. "You can just call me Chihiro."

"Well Chihiro," Teran pretended to adopt a more serious tone. "Could you take us to the bathrooms?"

"I thought I told you to go before we left!" Dia snapped.

Teran replied hotly, "But I'm a nervous person. I have to go badly!"

The argument continued as they walked down the hall, until finally, "Both of you shut up!"

It wasn't Chihiro, it was Yuki. Yuki who looked so timid now looked livid with annonyance. "I am sick of all of your constant bickering. If your parents knew that you argue such, why send you to the same Goddamned school?"

Dia poked her glasses further up her nose, "They sent us here for the same reason that you are here. Do not doubt our motives if you don't want us to doubt yours!"

Obviously, Yuki wasn't the most arguementative person, for she ignored Dia's comments and continued walking. Chihiro didn't get anything that they were saying. Dia had commented on 'the same reason that you are here', what did this all mean? None of it made any sense to Chihiro.

Dia seemed to be incredibly smart and had a fiery temper, and Teran obviously was sweet and a little childish with a hotter temper then her sister. Yuki acted like her namesake, cold. That word perfectly described her, she had hardly talked at all, something here didn't seem right.

"Chihiro," Teran brought her back to the present. They were now walking home from school and since Teran, Yuki, and Dia ahd been following her, they'd ended up in front of a large red brick tunnel. "Umm… did you mean to bring us here?"

"What?" Chihiro asked, she had been dazed, her feet bringing here of their own accord. "Oh no, I'm sorry I wasn't paying attention." Something familiar about this place… something that wanted her to enter and something that wanted her to run away. "But this place… it…"

"…feels so familiar," Yuki finished for her. Indeed, something about this place sparked something withing Chihiro. She vaguely remembered something, a bathhouse… a spirit bathhouse.

"We shouldn't be here," Chihiro muttered, but Teran and Yuki were already halfway down the passageway, with Dia standing a quarter of the way in. "Guys, we really should leave!" Even as she said that, her legs moved forward, carrying her toward them.

Teran grabbed her wrist as they continued through the tunnel emerging in the bright sunlight on the other side. "It's an abandoned theme park," Dia spoke in a hushed whiper.

Suddenly Yuki seemed much more cheerful, her icy blue eyes now warm welcoming sapphires. She called out to them from where she stood by a stream, "Come on guys!"

"What's got into you Yuki?" Teran yelled, dragging Chihiro over by the arm. "You're different," she finished as she caught up, Dia linking her arm through Teran's.

"Doesn't this place just make you feel a little more alive?" Yuki asked energenically. Her smile warm and welcoming.

As the four friends wandered throughout the place, they came across a bathhouse as it grew steadily darker…

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I know you guys are going to kill me for ending it there, but I wanted a cliffie, and I made one happen. This fanfic I'm planning to update whenever I feel like it, unless of course you guys like it… 


	2. Chapter 2: Memories

**A/N:** Last chapter wasn't that short. It was just over three pages, which is pretty good for a starting chapter of a story, anyways, I am planning on making this chapter longer then my last one without getting sidetracked.

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**Chapter 2: Memories

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**

"Guys, maybe we should getting going now, it's getting dark…" Chihiro told her friends.

"We're old enough to stay out after dark by ourselves," Yuki and Teran chimed, leaning over the railing and watching the train below them, "Chihiro calm down, at least try to enjoy yourself."

Something had awakened within these girls, there was no fear. Chihiro felt very fearful, she was scared, she had that feeling of deja-vu, and all she had of this place were hazy memories that she could hardly remember.

Detecting another presence, Chihiro spun around, a young girl, around fourteen or thirteen, stood there. "Kami above!" she spoke, drawing all of their attention, "What are you humans doing here?"

"Humans…?" Dia spoke. She looked at the girl, who stared back at her with equal fevor. Yuki and Teran looked around at the young girl.

The girl's eyes snapped from Dia to Yuki, she smiled, and tears flew from her eyes as she threw herself at Yuki, almost knocking her off her feet yelling, "Onee-san!"

"Err…" Yuki looked down at the girl's pale blue hair. The girl was embracing her as if there was no tomorrow.

"Yuki-chan! I thought you had abandoned me, and yet you are here with these people…" she was crying now. "Everything has changed. Aku-dono, he killed… the mistress and her son and has taken over the bathhouse! He beats us when we stand up to him! I haven't seen Masshiro-shan for a long time. This man he takes pleasure in the torturing of us."

Something must have snapped in Yuki, for she held the girl to her, "Aiso-chan…"

"They're lighting the lamps," Chihiro said worriedly. The lamps were lighting, and the shadows seemed to be moving.

Aiso snapped out her reverie, She grabbed Yuki's arm, who grabbed Teran's arm, Teran grabbed Chihiro, and Chihiro seized Dia. They ran, their feet padding heavily down on the street, soon, strange being began to flood the streets, and Aiso dragged them down a side street and into a trash filled alley.

"Are any of you disappearing?" Aiso asked, her voice slightly high.

There was a collective no from everyone, Aiso seemed relieved, "That was close. Aku-dono detests humans. But he finds them indispensible when it comes to laboring. You guys' will have to get jobs up at the bathhouse."

Chihiro moaned and cradled her head in her hands, images kept flooding through them. Some which she hoped would have remained hidden, the shadow, the enchanments, the owner of the bathhouse, Sen…

Teran wrapped her arm around Chihiro, "What's wrong?"

Chihiro leaned into Teran as her memories ended, the image of a boy with shoulder length black hair (A/N: I'm so unsure of the hair color… T.T I'll call it black, since I'm guessing here…). "Ha… Haku…" she murmured before fainting.

"Shit," Teran swore. "Now what?"

"We wait till she awakens," Aiso replied calmly. "Onee-san, why did you come back? You left without saying anything."

Yuki had pulled her knees up to her chest, and held them there, "I ran away."

"You ran away from what?" Dia asked curiously. "What's going on here? Yuki what's wrong with you? You've been acting strange sense we got here."

"It's coming back to me," Yuki spoke slowly. "I was imprisoned here in a trick. Imouto-san and I were sent here because of the debt our family owed Yubaba. We were the payment.

"I left because I needed a life of my own. I fled to the far Northern reaches of the Canadian country. I stayed there until I felt the snow shift."

"What do you mean 'the snow shift'?" Teran asked, still supporting Chihiro.

"Yuki-chan is the spirit of snow," Aiso replied. "We are two parts of a whole, ice and snow. I am ice and Yuki is snow.

"My one question is how you three," she gestured to Chihiro, Teran, and Dia, "Are able to remain as you are without needing to eat the food from this world."

"Is that strange?" Dia asked.

"For a human yes, one under the protection of a spirit or is a spirit themselves, then no. It depends on your being. Sages can survive in this realm."

"Aiso-chan, what happened to Yubaba and her son? The snow shifted in the slightest," Yuki added in.

"I don't know the details," aiso replied sadly. "Although business is better, Aku-dono has beaten many of us. And since he took over two months ago, I haven't seen Haku-sama, who stood up for us and defended us."

"Haku-sama is a river spirit so he should survive torture," Yuki replied.

Dia broke in, "Poisons can weaken even their immune systems and cause them to lose their ability to heal fast."

"I forgot about that," Yuki replied. "But that can take years to discover a recipe."

Aiso shook her head, "His body can produce this poison, it took me two weeks to heal from one of his lashings."

"So he's torturing this guy?" Teran asked, her eyes alight with animal feriousity. Teran had very good ideals, and hated people who tortured others. "We've got to stop this!"

Aiso and Yuki nodded their agreement, Dia looked at the wall, and didn't answer, her lips were stock still, Aiso spoke, "Until then we have to get you four jobs. Aku-don will not recongnize Onee-san, so she is safe, I am fearful for all of your lives…"

Chihiro stirred and pushed herself into a kneeling position before saying, "I remember everything…"

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Man, there, I actually have chapter three typed and ready to go, which is VERY good, and I've already started chapter four, so be happy for me. Anyways, I think I threaten you guys once again.

(pulls out old machine gun)MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! FEAR THE CRAZED AUTHORESS WITH A MACHINE GUN! (begins firing at reviewers who hide behind bullet proof metal walls, I rub out of ammo)Shit... AHHHHHH! (runs away while reviewers begin stabbing me with little pocket knives which hurt a lot) I'LL SEE YOU IF I LIVE! (continues running)


	3. Chapter 3: Discovery

**A/N:** Chapter 3, it's pathetic that I'm able to update this fast isn't it? Anyways, for some strange reason, I think Athrun and Haku look alike. Don't ask me why, I just think they do. Okay.

**Disclaimer:** Forgot this in chapter 1 and 2. I DO NOT own Spirited Away, it is owned by the wonderful Miyazaki-dono, and I am only borrowing his characters. I DO OWN Teran, Dia, Yuki, and Aiso, and any other characters that do not appear in the movie. Ari gato!

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**Chapter 3: Discovery

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**

Everyone looked at each other before looking at Chihiro, "What? Why are you all staring at me for?"

"Chihiro-san…" Aiso spoke hesitantly. "You said the name Haku before you passed out, did you know him?"

"Ha-hai," Chihiro stumbled over her words, afraid. "Why?"

"Aku-dono, the new owner of this bathhouse has taken him, and we all believe is torturing him," Aiso spoke quietly, her voice trembling. "We haven't seen him for about two months."

"WHAT?" Chihiro shouted. Anger surged through her veins and she immiedatly stood up, and tripped over a trash bag, landing on her butt when she landed, "OW!"

They laughed at her, Aiso's face practically looked like a tenshi, she looked so innocent and cute when she smiled or laughed happily.

Chihiro stood up and dusted herself off, glaring at them all, her gaze bringing them back to the seriousness of the situation.

They all sobered up immiedatly, and Aiso led them back to the bathhouse, slipping in around the side of it and coming to a set of stairs, "We have to be careful. Follow me, and step where I step."

The small group proceeded down the stairs, Chihiro feeling as though the weight of the world was on her shoulders, though she knew not why.

Teran accidently stepped in the middle of the plank, and it snapped and she flung her arms around the plank in front of her, which thankfully held, "Mind helping me up?"

Dia and Yuki, who were right in front of her stopped to pull her out of the slat hole and place her back on the steps.

Finally they reached a door, which led into the boiler room, Aiso whispered, "Please be there Lin-san."

Aiso then flung the door open and they all rushed inside. Teran and Dia were shivering, but Yuki and Aiso were perfectly fine, Chihiro just seemed to be ignoring it.

Aiso stepped into the light, Yuki beside her, while Dia, Teran, and Chihiro stood behind them.

Aiso spoke up, "These four girls would like jobs Lin-san."

Lin looked up, she eyed the frames of the three girls behind them, "I'll take them to Aku-dono then." Lin was now a few years older Chihiro, and looked a little more responsible. "Even though we haven't had a good history with humans."

Chihiro grimanced, obviously this sentence was meant for her, but she ignored it and stepped out with Teran and Dia.

Yuki hugged her sister before the four of them followed Lin out of the boiler room. "Can't you even manage a thank you?" she asked, Chihiro joining in.

Lin stopped and looked at her, then spoke with trembling lips, "Sen? Is it really you?"

Chihiro nodded her head shakily. She was nervous being back here. Although nothing had changed, everything had. (A/N: I contradicted myself there, but WTF I could care less.)

Lin hugged her, before leading them through the bathhouse to the elevator. She then took them to the top floor. "Okay, you four good luck!"

The four walked though the door into the immense hall of mirrors, each mirror revealing to them their darkest fears.

"What is it that you want?" came a chilling male voice. It was completely devoid of emotion.

Teran stepped forward, "Sir, we would like jobs here if it would not trouble you greatly." She'd figured that she should seem humble and revere him so as not to anger him.

"Very well, cause any trouble though and I will certainly administer your punishment myself."

"Yes sir."

The four bowed out of the room where they joined Lin, "Well?"

"He said it's okay," Dia replied. "But we must behave."

As Lin was congratulating them, Yuki turned to Chihiro, who seemed very depressed. "Chihiro what is wrong?"

Chihiro sobbed lightly and murmured something that none of them could hear. Something had distressed her. Then Aiso came hurrying up muttering about something Aku-dono wanted her to do. She hurried through the door.

"Come, it is late and you all need rest as you'll be waking up early tomorrow for your work," Lin explained. Leading the girls back down into the elevator and into the women's dormitories where they changed into white yukatas before crawling into a futon and falling asleep.

Chihiro was awakened in the middle of the night by Aiso poking her in the side. "Wake up!"

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Kill me if you hate the cliffie but you'll never find out what Aiso wants to say to Chihiro. NAH! Plus the fact that I'm still recovering from all the stab wounds that you guys gave me from last chapter. So take some pity on me and review the damn story! 


	4. Chapter 4: Healing

**A/N:** Okay, this is the fourth chapter that I've started in one day. The on and off humor in the last chapter came from my dinner, peanut butter jelly, yum! But anyways this one shall, hopefully be much longer, and maybe not end on a cliffie.

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**Chapter 4: Healing

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**

"What?" Chihiro muttered groggily as she sat up. Aiso was crouced in front of her, her work uniform stained in crimson liquid. Blood. "Aiso, why are you covered in-"

"No time!" she hissed, grabed Chihiro's arm and dragged her to her feet despite Chihiro's complaints of not being fully dressed. "It doesn't matter!"

Finally the pair scooted out of the dormitory without waking anyone. She still had a firm grasp on Chihiro's arm and was dragging her into a room down the hall from the dormitories.

"It was an old storage room, but it hasn't been used in years," she explained, and picked up a basket off the floor that was filled with little jars and bandages. "I managed to drag a futon and some blankets and a small pillow in here. Don't tell anyone about this."

"What about…?"

"The others? I don't see any reason for them to know yet."

"Know what though?"

Aiso pulled the door open and Chihiro stepped in as she shut the door behind them, and gasped.

In the pale moonlight fluttering in through the door which led out onto the balcony which was slightly open. It was Haku.

She ran over to him and dropped to her knees. Aiso lit a candle and placed it by his bed so that she could see his face.

There were three large gashes across each of his cheeks, a large black bruise adorned his right cheek. A deep gash above his left eye had caused the blood to fall over it and scabbed there.

There were numerous gashes, scratches, and bruises covering his body, and his clothes were torn badly. Aiso placed the basket above his head, she watched Chihiro silently.

Chihiro reached out a hand and cupped his cheek, rubbing her thumb against his cheek bone. When she drew her hand back, his blood covered her palm, the wounds hadn't even began to scab over.

Aiso wordlessly began removing bandages and small jars from the basket. Chihiro broke the silence, "What is in those jars?"

"Antiseptic, and poultices," Aiso replied. She stood up and left, returning with a bowl full of warm water and a cloth. "Should we start with his face?"

Chihiro nodded, as Aiso kneeled across from her, she reached out, took the damp cloth from the bowl and began dabbing gently at his face, wiping the dried blood off his eye (A/N: I blame CCS for the inspiration for that. T.T).

As daylight approached Aiso stood, it had taken them two hours just to clean up his face, "I'll be right back; I'm going to dump this water and get some fresh water. Don't leave this room."

Chihiro didn't look up, but nodded silently.

Aiso turned and sighed, before leaving the room. As she headed toward a washroom, Lin and Teran stopped her, "Aiso, have you seen Chihiro?"

"Not since last night," Aiso replied evenly. Lying came naturally to her, the ability to keep her face straight and her voice calm and smooth. "Why?"

Teran added in looking around, "We woke up this morning and she wasn't in the dorm. We thought you two were up to something."

Aiso laughed, "Like what?"

"Staging a rescue mission without a proper plan." Yuki this time, she came up behind Teran and Lin. "Aiso, what are you doing with that bowl?"

"I was going to empty it and get some more."

"Why?" Dia asked, pushing her glasses up her nose a little. "Are you doing something you're not telling us?"

"No, I'm just doing some cleaning, and I need some fresh water," Aiso lied again. "And I haven't seen Chihiro-san."

Aiso brushed by, and was almost passed Lin, when said person noticed the hue of the water, "Aiso, if you're doing cleaning, why is the water red? Like…" Lin didn't finished her sentence, she let the thought hang.

"… blood," Teran finished. The five stood in absolute silence, Teran, Lin, Yuki, and Dia trying to figure out what was going on, Aiso trying to lie her way out of this situation.

"One of the – HEY!" Yuki snatched the bowl out of Aiso's hands. "Give it back!"

Yuki shook her head, and held the bowl out of Aiso's hands, "Explain Aiso-chan."

"There's nothing to explain," Aiso replied, her hands balling into fists. "And it isn't my secret to tell. You'll have to ask elsewhere. I will not betray secrets that are not mine."

Yuki handed the bowl back to Aiso with a look that said 'I will be finding out with or without your consent.' Aiso rolled her eyes and continued onward.

The three turned toward Yuki, Teran muttered angerly, "Why'd you let her go?"

"She made a point," Yuki replied. "We'll have to find out ourselves. Just have some faith and patience."

Dia smiled here, "Patience is one thing Teran lacks."

The four continued downstairs, Teran and Lin were assigned to cleaning the big tub, while Dia and Yuki cleaned up one of the guestrooms.

"How often is this thing cleaned?" Teran asked, clearly disgusted. "Eew… it's like wading through a sewer."

"We only clean it once every five months or so," Lin explained. "But we only use it for the most dirty of the customers."

Teran wrinkled her nose in disgust, "It's worse then the bathroom at my old school…"

"What was so bad about it?"

"The fact that the girls' bathroom was flooded so often that we had to use the boys'," Teran explained. "The fact that some people enjoyed smearing the contents of the toilets didn't help the clean factor in any way."

"Okay, I see…"

Finally, late in the evening, Chihiro and Aiso managed to clean Haku up, many of the wounds hadn't scabbed over yet, but Chihiro was optimistic.

"Do you think he'll recover rapidly?"

"He'll probably be fine in a couple of days; stable anyway," Aiso stood up. "By the way, the others wer looking for you. They want to know where you went."

Chihiro remained silent and continued looking at Haku, "I'll stay here for the night. You can go and get something to eat."

Aiso bowed, at the waist, the bowl balanced on her hip, "I thank you very much for helping me Chihiro-san. I will try to sneak you something to eat."

Chihiro watched the young girl leave the room before returning her gaze to Haku.

Like most spirits, he'd aged slightly, (A/N: I'm guessing here.) so he only looked a few years older then herself.

She stroked his brow before lying down on the floor beside him.

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Yeah, sorry about the suspense last chapter. But you did review! I am still recovering from those stab wounds... (pulls some antiseptic out of pocket, removes bandage and slathers it on, blood gushes out) OWIE!


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